Saturday, August 11, 2007

Suey, whaddya see? The greatest duck in history!

What would a weekend be without frenzied activity? Damn lonely, that's for sure.Geoff had another book signing today, this time at a marathon (when I told my Mom this, she said, "What? At a gas station?") and I took the girls to RAPTOR with me and when Geoff was done, he came and got the girls. We do a lot of car/kid swapping and it wears me out.As the girls and I were about to leave the neighborhood, we saw this:

Ducks on Parade!When I saw them, I thought of the song near the end of Charlotte's Web...

My land, isn't he grand?Zuckerman's famous pigGolly, you gotta agree he's a real celebrityFine, swine wish he was mineWhat if he's not so big?He's some terrific, radiant, humble thig-a-majig of a pigThe terrific, radiant, humbleZuckermanZuckermanZuckermanZuckermanZuckerman'sZuckerman's famous pig!Sorry, went on a little long there...But don't they look like they are in a parade? And the one in front looked like he was sporting a tuxedo.When I got out of my car, they ran at me. Like I was a loaf of bread and just flashed them the goods.

These ducks have been seen around the subdivision for awhile now. And no one knows who they belong to. They are way too friendly for their own good. One bit me, and one bit Isabelle. I shooed them off the street and we went on. Geoff, can we have some ducks? We can let them noodle around in the back yard, and it will give Nellie and Hooper something to do. They can practice their herding.

Research is ongoing as to what kind of bug this is. It moved like a Garthim.

I had gone out to pick some fresh milkweed, and found a monarch cat I obviously had missed for the past week or so:

He is a biggin. Probably in his 5th and last instar. So I should be able to post his transformation into a jade earring soon.

And now, a bird quiz:We have a possible new program bird at RAPTOR. She has been jessed and Jeff (Of tree-climbing fame) worked with her some today. We are giving her one more chance to make a full recovery from a broken wing, but if she stays with us, she will go out on programs with me.I don't think Mon@rch should be allowed to guess on this one, since he has so much experience with banding and so on. But if no one gets it right, I will let him guess.

She's in a mew with Scarlet, our red-tailed hawk.Any guesses on what kind of bird she is?Hint: She is a juvenile. But that's not really a hint. Juvenile birds of prey all look alike.Come on guys...make me proud.The prize: I will make you a "Cape May First Annual Birder Blogger Conference" T-shirt.

Click on this link when you are having a bad day and need a giggle

A Glossary for newcomers to the blog:

"Embrace your Inner Sheep": You'll just have to read back a ways for the explanation of that one.

FTS (Also known as F*** the Swainsons): When you just cannot, under any circumstances, get out and look at another bird today. That's it. I don't care what it is. F*** the Swainsons!

The Flock: A group of women (and a few men thrown in for good measure) who met here in Cyberspace and now travel together to birding festivals. We are unique in this because birders don't usually travel in "packs".

Learning Lemur: (See Science Chimp)

RAPTOR: A Cincinnati-based rehab center for birds of prey (also where I work)

Science Chimp: A term coined by Julie Zickefoose. Meaning anyone who sees something nature-oriented (whether it be scat or bones or the scene of a predator strike) and MUST figure out the circumstances. There is much grunting and "eep-eep-eeping" involved in a full-on Science Chimp display. Someone who is learning the art of Chimping can be called a "Learning Lemur".

"Squeee!": This is a noise you make when something is so cute or perfect, no other word will do.

"What? Lynne has herpes?": What your blogger heard and said during a quiet moment at an owl prowl when someone said that Lynne (Hasty Brook) has groupies.